KANSAS CITY, Mo — After a season full of highlights and records that were broken, the highest individual honors have been announced. Damontre Harris, D'Von Campbell and Eric Gaines were all named to the NAIA All-America lists officials announced on Wednesday.
Harris earned first team honors, Campbell was named to the second team and Gaines was named honorable mention. In addition to the NAIA list, Harris and Campbell also picked up second team NCCAA All-American honors. NAIA RELEASE
"I am very proud of these three seniors and all they have accomplished," said NAIA Coach of the Year Keith Adkins. "When you have a season like our team has, you hope that your players get rewarded as individuals, also."
Harris was the nation's top rim protector all season. The Fayetteville, N.C. product swatter 3.1 shots a game and blocked a total of 105 shots to lead the NAIA. He also finished the season ranked No. 8 with 10.1 rebounds a game.
Harris averaged a double-double, adding 11.4 points a game. It is the first time any Tiger has averaged a double-double since Brandon Warner did so in 2003-04. Harris recorded the first known triple-double in Tiger history, scoring 11 points grabbing 19 rebounds and blocking 11 shots. He was one of only five players to record a triple-double and ranked No. 4 in the NAIA and No. 1 in the Mid-South Conference with 18 double-doubles.
"For Damontre to be rewarded with first team honor, it says a lot about what people think of his ability," said Adkins. "He is the only player on the first team that was not a Player of the Year in the conference."
Campbell was named to the NAIA Second Team after leading the Tigers with 16.7 points and 4.9 assists per game. Campbellsville finished the season ranked No. 3 with 174 assists and No. 7 in assists per contest.
He also ranked No. 17, scoring 585 points. Campbell scored a career-high 33 points twice in 2014-15.
"D'Von had a great year for us," said Adkins. "He led us in so many ways and carried us offensively when we were struggling."
Gaines was the lone returner to pick up Al-American honors. The senior from Chicago, Ill. was named honorable mention for the second time in his career.
He had the biggest adjustment for the Tigers after leading the team in scoring last season with 14.4 points a game. In 2014-15, he sacrificed his scoring for betterment of the team and took on a different role. Gaines finished behind Campbell and Harris, scoring 10.9 points a game but grabbed 7.7 rebounds per contest. He scored 776 points in his two-year career for the Tigers and was highlighted on SportsCenter Top 10 last year with a posterizing slam dunk against Lindenwood University-Belleville on Feb. 24, 2014.
"I cannot say enough about what Eric Gaines brought to our team," said Adkins. "He sacrificed so much for us to be a better team this year. I am very glad to see that he repeated on the honorable mention list."
Pikeville's Kenny Manigualt was named NAIA Player of the Year after averaging 19.4 points per contest (641 tota) in his team's 33 games this season, helping lead the Bears to a 28-6 mark and a trip to the NAIA quarterfinals.
Dalton State (Ga.) won the 2015 NAIA Championships, beating Westmont (Calif.), 71-53. The Roadrunners head coach, Tony Ingle was named the Rawlings-NAIA Coach of the Year in just his second year at the helm. Dalton States basketball program is in its second-year of varsity existence and first year being championship eligible. The squad wrapped up its second-year with a 58-8 overall record.
Campbellsville (29-6) finished the season in the NAIA second round with a loss to Westmont (Calif.), 65-61. CU recorded the most wins in history with 29 and sat atop the NAIA Polls for three-straight weeks to start the 2015 New Year. The Tigers won their second Mid-South Conference regular season title and also the MSC Tournament.
To cap off the awards for CU, Adkins was named the NABC-NAIA Coach of the Year at that NAIA tipoff banquet on March 17.
